Yellow Ranunculous

Yellow Ranunculous     6" x 6"      Acrylic     Sheila Ashley Liston
Available $135

I love the floral department at my local Heinen's Grocery in Aurora, Ohio.  Often, one can find unusual flowers that are in season for only a short time. In my world, that's an artist's urgent call to paint and paint now! This little painting was a "just for fun" experiment with tools that I don't ordinarily use.      

 I was happy with the result of my experimenting with colors that make me feel happy. This was done on a gessoed panel that was firm enough to allow for a little rough handling. I decided to apply paint with an old credit card, a razor blade, and a shaper tool. 

When this painting was finished, it seemed to call out for a soft gold finish on the frame with double pinstripes that complement the painting's color. It's overall framed size is 7" x 7" which still allows this small painting to fit nicely on a tiny easel for desk or table display.

Thanks for visiting my blog! Hope you enjoy the painting!

Cathedral Falls in June

Cathedral Falls in June   4" x 12"
Acrylic   ©Sheila Ashley Liston
Available Framed $120

The summer of 2016 was just beginning when Bill and I visited a few of our favorite spots in West Virginia. We always stop at this roadside park that has a most beautiful waterfall with easy access. We see this along Route 60 as we leave the Charleston area on Route 60 on the way to Hawks Nest State Park. At Hawk's Nest, we met a lovely group of ladies who were having a scrapbooking retreat. They were kind enough to let me visit with their creative group. Oh my, I do love art supplies of all kinds and creative people! Thank you, Margie Price and group, from South Charleston.

I was working on this painting about 2 weeks after our visit, only to learn that West Virginia had suffered one of the most devastating floods in their history, resulting in many deaths. For the first time that I could remember, it affected the area where I grew up in Clay County. The bridge to my childhood home was washed away as the water forced its way through the quiet little community of Dille. I am grateful for my family and friends who were safe, but not without damage to their properties.

As I painted these falls, I couldn't help but wonder at how water can be the very necessity for sustaining our lives, and yet be so devastating that it takes lives with it as it rushes back to the oceans. 

Glade Creek

Glade Creek    4" x 8"    Acrylic   ©Sheila Ashley Liston
Available $85

Day 6 of Thirty Paintings in Thirty Days, September 2017. 

As I stood on the bridge, Glade Creek was sending rushing water under the bridge, past the mill and on to the waterfalls below.  Glade Creek runs through Babcock State Park in West Virginia where the Glade Creek Grist Mill is located. (See blog on September 1, 2017)

I grew up in Dille, West Virginia with a creek running in front of our house. This scene reminded me of the times that it would rain so heavy that it seemed to touch the bottom of the bridge leading to our house. It was moving so fast that I would actually feel like I could lose my balance while looking down through the spaces between the boards. As a child, I believed that the water would never go above that level.  The sound was actually soothing as I would sleep. 

In June of 2015, flash flooding in West Virginia took out the bridge where I lived. This was when flooding affected people over a large part of the state. As a child, I never imagined so much devastation could have ever occurred. 

Myrtle Beach Pier

Myrtle Beach Pier   5 x 7    Acrylic  ©Sheila Ashley Liston
SOLD 

Myrtle Beach Pier framed

Sunrises are always awesome, but especially so at the beach!

I love the sights, sounds, and the smell of the salty breeze that one finds at the beach. My mind goes to how I might paint the whole experience. With a fascination for wave forms, I find myself studying most of them.  With my cell phone camera and my husband's photography, we can come away with subject matter for a very long time.

Even though I work mostly with pastels, I do enjoy acrylics as another way of expression. Actually if the truth be known, I've never met a medium that I didn't love! However, for the sake of focus, I have narrowed it down to these two for now.

This painting is done on a gessoed board and varnished with a UV protective solution. It is framed in a warm gray moulding that resembles driftwood. There is a white linen liner that separates the painting from the frame to allow a pleasing presentation.  

Early Morning Beach Walk

Early Morning Beach Walk      8 x 10    Acrylic     ©Sheila Ashley Liston
Available $150

It's worth getting up at 6am at the beach!

I must confess I am not an early riser to say the least. We were staying at Myrtle Beach with our family. While they slept, I awoke at 5:50 am and thought that I might really be able to sneak out of the house without waking the household. That's a bit brave for me to go out alone in an unfamiliar place. Yet the sunrise was calling and I had to do it. I was rewarded with a breathtaking scene, worth every second of more sleep. One of God's light shows began to unfold before me. For me, it was a spiritual experience...a chance to be in the presence of my Creator.   

I knew that I would need to paint the experience many times. This is my interpretation in acrylic paint. It's impossible to record the whole experience in paint, but it does give me the opportunity to relive the experience. 

Have you had a similar experience?